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recoil

verb · noun

Simple meaning

Spring back; spring away from an impact.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

reekoyl

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US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

ɹiˈkɔɪl

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

verb

  1. Spring back; spring away from an impact

  2. weaponry

    Of a firearm: to quickly push back when fired.

  3. To pull back, especially in disgust, horror or astonishment.

noun

  1. firearms

    The energy transmitted back to the shooter from a firearm which has fired. Recoil is a function of the weight of the weapon, the weight of the projectile, and the speed at which it leaves the muzzle.

  2. The state or condition of having recoiled.

  3. firearms

    A movement back from an impact

  4. An escapement in which, after each beat, the scape-wheel recoils slightly.

  5. A starting or falling back; a rebound; a shrinking.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
C1 · Advanced
Frequency
Uncommon
Typical Use
Primarily written

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: Spring back; spring away from an impact

Used this way, recoil is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Emotional tone
Neutral
Formality
Neutral
Intensity
Not strongly marked
How common
Moderately common
Connotation
No strong connotation
Usage feel
Neutral and straightforward

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

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Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

Spring / movement

recoil spring

Firearm / energy

recoil energy

Recoil

recoil before

Other combinations

recoil pressurerecoil electron

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Similar Words, What’s the Difference?

Close in meaning, but not always interchangeable.

  • rebound

    Spring back; spring away from an impact.

  • spring

    To cause to spring (all senses).

  • shrink

    To move back or away, especially because of fear or disgust.

More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin

Synonyms

verb

Sense: spring back

shrinkrebound

noun

Sense: energy transmitted back to the shooter from a firearm which has fired. Recoil is a function of the weight of the weapon

ricochetTechnical

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.